Future first lady Martha Washington goes through her daily devotions. A young James Madison muses over the meaning of a proposed bill for religious toleration. Baptist preacher Gowan Pamphlet leads his congregation in singing an African greeting. But what’s behind the dramatic portrayals?…

“A commitment to religious freedom is one of the most important achievements of the founding era precisely because it could be dangerous,” said James Sidbury, Andrew W. Mellon Distinguished Professor of Humanities at Rice University, in a talk at the Dewitt Wallace Museum. But dangerous to whom? Sidbury was a featured speaker during Religion Month at Colonial Williamsburg, which features a special emphasis on the role of faith in the nation’s founding….

Williamsburg audience narrowly votes against a more “United States of Europe.” On stage are Jörg Asmussen, Liam Fox and moderator Roger Cohen.

By Bill Sullivan

A collegial debate marked the final public session in this week’s Williamsburg-CSIS forum on the future of the European Union. New York Times columnist Roger Cohen moderated the exchange, which considered the motion, “A United States of Europe?”…

“When Americans hear the words ‘United States of Europe,’ we take notice, especially in Williamsburg,” said Colonial Williamsburg Foundation president Colin Campbell in opening yesterday’s four-day discussion on the long-term prospects for European unity. The Williamsburg-CSIS Forum got off to a slushy start on Monday with sessions delayed by winter weather….

“The boisterous sea of liberty is never without a wave,” wrote Thomas Jefferson in 1820. The democratic tide in the Middle East has proven his point, as people struggle to secure the progress they have made all across that region. Acclaimed Middle East reporter Robin Wright addressed these challenges of revolution Saturday during the “Turning Worlds Upside Down” forum co-sponsored by Colonial Williamsburg and the Chautauqua Institution….

Annette Gordon-Reed is a Harvard Law School scholar who has earned wide praise for her work, especially “The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family,” which won a Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award, among other honors. She will participate in an upcoming forum co-sponsored by the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and the Chautauqua Institution, “Turning Worlds Upside Down: Liberty and Democracy in Revolutionary Times.” This week, she answered a few questions from Colonial Williamsburg Foundation’s Bill Sullivan in advance of her visit.